"Politicians have now stepped in as ringmaster and our democracy is tarnished as a result. Requiring a two third majority from both Houses for future changes in the Royal Charter introduces political involvement for all time into press regulation in the UK. It is a bleak moment for the UK’s international reputation as a country where press freedom is cherished as a fundamental principle and right."

Hacked Off left the room before the crucial phase of the negotiations.

12.30pm David Cameron says:

I’ve always wanted two things, and that is a strong regulator who can stand up for victims – and we’ve got that – and also a proper defence of press freedom, and we’ve got that. What’s happened is that everyone has accepted my argument for a Royal Charter. Why does that matter? Well, I thought it was important to avoid a press law, a law that said ‘the press can do this, the regulator’s got to do that, you can’t do that’ – that would be dangerous, that’s not going to happen, that’s what we secured, and that’s why this is a good deal.

He added:

It’s not statutory underpinning. What it is is simply a clause that says ‘politicians can’t fiddle with this’, so it takes it further away from politicians, which is actually, I think, a sensible step. What we wanted to avoid and what we have avoided is a press law. Nowhere would it say what this body is, what it does, what it can’t do, what the press can or can’t do – that, quite rightly, is being kept out of parliament. So no statutory underpinning, but a safeguard that says politicians can’t in future fiddle with this arrangement.

Told that Tory MPs have been summoned to Boothroyd Room at 14.15 today to be addresed by Cameron on his press regulation plans.

Ed Miliband says:

I'm delighted that we've come to a cross-party agreement. It's something I've worked flat-out [for], particularly over the last three days, because I think it's essential that we do move forward with consensus on this. We'll see the details later. But it's pretty well exactly what I hoped for when I published the ideas alongside the Labour party last Friday.

Trevor Kavanagh, the former Sun political editor told Sky News:

Until we've examined the fine print we will have to hold our fire, but it's a little worrying when the three political parties get together and their final verdict is welcomed so enthusiastically by Hacked Off, which is definitely seeking to shackle and gag the free press.

Labour have been forced to backdown on proposals to have extreme press regulation. …Crucially, Conservatives have said no to Labour’s statutory underpinning of a press regulator….Labour had said no to a Royal Charter. Now we see a complete climbdown from Labour.

One senior paper person tells me that tho they have yet to see the "Leveson lock" detail, and tho not happy, it is possible they settle.

10am Mark Ferguson on Labour List is worried by restrictions on the press also applying to blogs:

Hang on a second. This Royal Charter appears to be attempting to regulate the Internet. Where to begin with how this won’t work? For starters, how do you define “publishes in the UK”? Is this where the servers are based? Is it who the audience is? Is it the content?

Also, will this be compulsory? We’re told by Labour sources close to the negotiations that this isn’t the case, but an “opt-in” system for blogs and online publications could very soon become compulsory as news media increasingly moves online. That’s likely to come with a great deal of expense and bureaucracy involved. A small organisation like LabourList might just be able to deal with that, but other (smaller) blogs possibly couldn’t.

Congrats to Cameron and Oliver Letwin MP who have saved a free press at the 11th hour. What a fail by Labour, political wing of Hugh Grant. ….Statute here applies to any royal charter, not targeted at press. Win for Cameron. High stakes poker too.

To all those bloggers who support this press control Charter because they hate Murdoch and Dacre, Guido offers this cautionary counsel, remember that the new regulator will cover you as well. You will have all the expense and bureaucracy of compliance as Murdoch and Dacre
face, without the means. Unless like Guido and the Spectator you plan to become media outlaws too…

8.45am The BBC report that Labour are claiming victory as a deal is reached between hree main political parties on press regulation.

Harriet Harman said a planned vote on the issue due to be held in the Commons later will not go ahead. But the BBC's Nick Robinson said Labour and the Liberal Democrats had appeared to have accepted a watered-down version of their demands for full legal underpinning of a royal charter establishing a new watchdog.

Ms Harman told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "Yes, there is an agreement." adding that "a small piece of legislation" to the enterprise and regulatory reform bill will be tabled in the Lords

"We’re very close to a deal but I think what has been accepted by all the parties is that the Prime Minister’s Royal Charter should go ahead, and that importantly we’ve stopped Labour’s extreme version of the press law, which now, as part of any deal, the Labour party would actually vote against….I think now there’s a very clear acceptance from Labour, from the Liberals, that the Prime Minister’s Royal Charter is the right way forward and we should stop the extreme version of press law that has been tabled.’Former Conservative MP Louise Mensch said a new regulator not bolstered by the law would still be more powerful than the Press Complaints Commission. She said: "For a start off you'd have more independent people sitting on the board, you'd have far greater powers to fine, apologies would be more prominent."